Toxic Workplace - Room Leader Pippa Pop-ins Employee Review

1.0
22 Mar 2021
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Hard to find any, but I would say (some) people. I had some wonderful colleagues and made good friends. I also actually learned a lot while working there, although it was baptism by fire.

Cons

There is no coaching/mentoring programme for new staff. They do the minimum effort required, through a so called "induction" process, where they show you the fire exists and the toilets and then... good luck figuring the rest out! The hours are very long and there is no need for that. There is a big focus on the looks of the nursery and the staff. The requirements around what we had to wear (including what colour to do our nails, what kind of shoes to wear and how to style our hair) were very unreasonable and actually quite ridiculous. There is also no uniform stipend, so I don't understand how none of the employees have said anything about being asked to buy uniforms out of their own pockets. What is worse, the focus on looks and image takes away from the focus on children. There are many children labelled as having special needs or being "difficult" when the poor littles just don't have access to age-appropriate activities.

Explore other reviews about Pippa Pop-ins

5.0
16 Dec 2022
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Really Great people work here

Cons

There are no cons to this place

5.0
16 Sept 2025
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Gosh where do I start? First of all, this is way overdue but I worked for PP under previous ownership, where I worked very closely with the cop owner and principal of one of their branches. PP is a wonderful environment, a true haven for children. It’s clean and tended to throughout the day by on site housekeeping, packed with resources, has incredible food prepared by on site chefs, the curriculum is well rounded, teachers are well trained and knowledgeable, the children are kept really busy with extra curricular classes. I could go on and on. Bottom line, I learnt so much from them that I was then able to open my own nursery school in East London. I emulate them in so many ways, allowing my nursery to be of the same standard, which my parents at my nursery genuinely love. They taught me the value of excellent communication, transparency, ensuring all staff felt ready for their role (with consistent training) and overall professionalism. I speak about PP VERY often, to my staff, y parents at the nursery and to anyone who will listen. I will be eternally grateful for what I’ve learnt there, with extra thanks to Rachel, Jane and Nicola, who gave me a chance, gave me grace, helped mould me and allowed me to thrive in management. Thank you PP!

Cons

I can’t think of any, really, but I have to mention the hours. The hours are long but they speak about that in the interviews, asking if you feel you can cope. Most say yes but then after a while find it too much, the rest complained about it sometimes but soldier on. Also, it doesn’t happen anymore but we used to have to stay until 7pm every Monday for training. But this became less frequent and reserved for important training for all the branches once every term, sometimes less than that. I’m not sure how it’s done now under new ownership (Duke’s)

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